It's not that he's not musical. . . - Part 1
by Bluegoo
Summary: Yes, I updated! And here we have a M&T, S&S, T&Y, and-many-other-random-pairing fic, although I cunningly included some of those pairings only at the end, so you have to read the whole thing, heh, heh. . .


Hmm. . . this is one step up on the evolutionary ladder from a monologue. This time, it's a dialogue. Admittedly only between two people. But hey. . . I know I repeat myself in places â€" and oh, and that wierd bit at the end is to make up for all the insufferable dramatisation of the Meilin-Tomoyo scene. . . blame it on overdose of white chocolate. . . mmm. . . sugar- rush. . .  
  
Well, next stop (rubs hands together) S+F, and thanks for reviewing!  
  
Ooh, almost forgot: disclaimer: Clamp these characters are all yours, despite the now unrecognisable mess I've made of them, I make no money, I mean no harm, and please don't sue me!  
  
______________________________________________________  
  
". . . Oh, it's not that he's not musical," Keroberos, Guardian beast of the Seal, confided in Sakura, "It's just that. . ."  
  
He struggled to find the words to tell her . . .  
  
"Well. . . you know how Clow was resented by some of the mages around, because he was so powerful, and hated playing by the rules. . . one day, this bunch of magicians came by, and they were trying to lay siege to his, uh, mansion. . . Anyway, Yue was holding one of his concerts - Clow loved them, of course, he was always on the piano trying to get his angel to play along, usually with the lid up, it was a good protection. . . the thing is. . . you wouldn't think it now, he can be so repressed, but Yue gets really nervous when he performs in front of people, for some reason. But anyway, these mages ran into the room and what with all the people. . . he. . . well, afterwards, Clow decided to let him take up archery instead." From that day forth, Yue's ability to turn musical instruments into offensive weapons was legendary. Kero suspected they still told the scare-stories to children who wouldn't practise, that they'd wake up to find themselves pinioned to the wall with their own violin bow.  
  
"Besides, when he practiced the violin it sounded like Meilin singing- um, uh, eheh-"  
  
"What was that?!" Meilin shrieked, thus proving Kero's point. Tomoyo giggled slightly. She was filming Sakura with her usual rapt expression, completely focused. Even her glossy black hair was still. Sakura, predictably, and growled at her guardian;  
  
"Kero-chan!"  
  
"Nani? It does! Sheesh, I was paying you a compliment. . . Yue was pretty good at the violin!"  
  
"You said he used it as an offensive weapon!" Yelled Meilin and the row escalated from there. It was so easy to provoke the hot-headed Chinese girl, and judging from Sakura's 'hoeeeees', it was time to try and be the personal equivalent of carbon rods in the nuclear reactor. The red-eyed girl was on her feet, shaking her fist at the tiny guardian, face matching her unusual eye colour, Kero was threatening to turn big and squish her. . . when Tomoyo whipped a plate of newly-baked cookies from behind her and offered them up.  
  
"Arigato. . ." Sakura sighed in relief.  
  
Kero-chan forgot the argument immediately and, with shimmering eyes, began munching, but Meilin was not so easily mollified.  
  
"Hmpph!" she snorted, "I'm a wonderful singer, anyway - plush toy!"  
  
Kero-chan paused in his munching to growl at her over a biscuit bigger than he was. Before it could start up again, Tomoyo took Meilin by the hand and tugged her out of the room.  
  
"Why don't you help me make some more cookies. . ." she was saying as she guided Meilin out the door.  
  
Tomoyo got her downstairs into the kitchen, still ranting about how she was a good singer, and Kero was very rude to even suggest otherwise, face haughtily turned to one side, until Tomoyo gently turned her round to calm her down.  
  
Unexpectedly, the girl saw her eyes were brimming with tears. . . Meilin had turned away to hide them.  
  
For a moment, Tomoyo was at a loss - Meilin was very proud, and rarely sad, at least outwardly. And it might hurt her feelings if Tomoyo brought attention to her crying. Instead, she pretended not to notice, and smiled at her:  
  
"I know you're a good singer. You joined the choir, remember?" Meilin had closed her eyes now and stuck her nose in the air, but her face was much too pale.  
  
"Why don't you sing with me, a beautiful song. Kero-chan will hear it upstairs and he'll stop disbelieving you."  
  
Meilin shook her head and turned stiffly. Her throat was too tight.  
  
"No, thank you Tomoyo. I'm going home. Excuse me, please give my regards to Sakura-chan."  
  
She hurried blindly out of the room, in a manner which would have been rude, if Tomoyo hadn't seen her pain. The gentle girl was worried. . . perhaps she should talk to Sakura about her. . . or Syaoran. They knew Meilin better than anyone else. . .  
  
Tomoyo, however, understood Meilin's position perhaps better than they did - after all, if Meilin had lost her betrothal to Syaoran, Tomoyo had seen her beloved Sakura fall in love and out of it, and finally, perhaps irrevocably, in love again. The difference was, Tomoyo found it easier to be happy for Sakura than Meilin, knowing that her genki friend had finally found the right partner for her. It had never been Tomoyo, and Tomoyo had known that and was devoted to her anyway. She always would be.  
  
Meilin, though. . . she laughed inwardly at that, because, upon finally accepting her gruff cousin was truly and sometimes hilariously besotted with his rival, Meilin had done everything but trap the two in a secluded room with romantic music and a sign saying 'confess your undying love for each other and propose while you're at it.' . . .  
  
Her approach had in fact probably been better than Tomoyo's more devious machinations, Tomoyo thought with affection; //both Meilin-chan and Sakura- chan can be awfully dense at times. . .// it was one of their most endearing qualities. . . //demo. . . // Tomoyo looked thoughtful - //it is strange that she should be upset now, after she helped them.// The human heart was never simple.  
  
Sakura tromped downstairs to find her friend still absently stirring the biscuit mix.  
  
"T-tomoyo-chan? Is Meilin still here?"  
  
"I don't think so. . . I think she had to go, but she told me to thank you, Sakura."  
  
"Oh. . ." Sakura blinked at the sight of Tomoyo gazing absently out of the window. "I was hoping she could stay for dinner. . . demo. . . is she all right?"  
  
Tomoyo clasped her hands thoughtfully. "I'm not sure. . . I think perhaps I might pay Meilin a visit, later."  
  
"Good idea! I'll go with you!" Sakura beamed, much to Tomoyo's amusement. It was like Sakura to be kind and worried about other people - only, Tomoyo wasn't sure Sakura's cheerfulness would be appreciated right now. Meilin was lonely and despite her concern, Sakura was obviously very wrapped-up in her feelings for Syaoran. Tomoyo wondered if her company was what Meilin wanted at the moment.  
  
"That's very thoughtful of you. . . but. . . didn't Syaoran want to have dinner with you tonight?"  
  
Sakura bit her lip. "Oh yes. . . well. . . " she thought for a moment and her smile returned, "I'm sure he wouldn't mind popping in to see Meilin, after all, she is his cousin . . ."  
  
"Oh, but Sakura, then you'll miss out on some time alone," Tomoyo had perfected the gloriously sparkly-eyed adoration she turned on her friend now, "and Kero promised me he would take pictures of you together. . . "  
  
Sakura made a mental note to exclude her sun guardian on the date and blushed, embarrassed. . . "T-tomoyo-chan. . . "  
  
While she was distracted by the mental image of tiny Kero-chan training a camera on her and Syaoran from behind a pot plant, Tomoyo slipped in her suggestion:  
  
"Besides, I was going to drop by and give her these biscuits, so she already knows I am coming. . . oh, would you like to help me make them, Sakura-chan?"  
  
"Hai! You're such a good cook! Demo. . . "  
  
Sakura still felt guilty, as though Meilin's abrupt exit was her fault.  
  
Tomoyo thoughtfully put a finger to her lips. "Although of course, if you did decide to come I could film you myself. . ."  
  
"Oh - oh no, it's okay!" Her genki friend ruffled nervously at the sweatdrop building behind her, "I'll make some extra cookies to say sorry, though."  
  
Perfect. Happily, Tomoyo helped Sakura with the baking until it was time to go, a little disappointed that she couldn't cook and film at the same time, but if this gift was to be from her as well as Sakura, she wanted to make much of it herself.  
  
Smelling the cinnamon-scented aroma of baking, Kero wafted down and hovered over his personal idea of heaven.  
  
"No, Kero-chan! They're cooking!" Sakura admonished him with a sticky finger, "And you're not getting any."  
  
"NANI?!!" Kero fluttered into her face, steaming with annoyance.  
  
Sakura, though, poked him in the chest and looked serious. "I'm not kidding! You upset Meilin-chan and these are to make it up to her. If you could cook, I would've made you help!"  
  
"Aw, sheesh-" Then Kero paused. "She's upset still? I was only joking. . ."  
  
Sakura looked at him, and Tomoyo leaned forward to see Keroberos looking rather repentant. "It's all right, I'm dropping by to see her later. She was a little tired, that's all, having flown in yesterday."  
  
"Ah, jet-lag, No wonder she's on a short leash."  
  
Keroberos had been to Hong-Kong with Sakura and had been somewhat the worse for wear after an hour-long plane trip in her stuffy carry-all, so he sympathised. . . and soon was back to his usual self, declaring how planes were a lousy invention anyway, he could've flown to Hong Kong in half the time. . . but Tomoyo noticed he didn't ask for any more biscuits, and as he was drifting out of the kitchen again, he paused and looked over his shoulder.  
  
"Demo. . . you'll tell her I didn't mean it, ne?" before quickly disappearing up the stairs.  
  
Tomoyo smiled a little sadly. Her friend wasn't as naive as she had been, and Kero-chan had changed, too. Sakura-chan was watching her guardian beast fondly.  
  
"I'll take one for him, anyway. . . you will tell her, won't you?"  
  
Tomoyo gripped her hand briefly; "Of course, Sakura-chan."  
  
After they said goodnight and went their separate ways, with Sakura waving briefly through the bright curtains of her room before they swung closed, Tomoyo walked on alone. She wasn't lonely or frightened, although she did think about calling her bodyguards to pick her up and take her to Meilin's house. Daytime or night time, Tomoyo thought they were equally beautiful, and ever in balance, according to her book on Chinese philosophy. It held such fascinating concepts, and she had found herself applying them more and more to the people around her - the most obvious examples, of course, being Keroberos and Yue, Sakura's guardians.  
  
Tomoyo didn't really have much to do with Yue - the distant and mysterious angel was the one Keroberos had been destroying the musical reputation of, with as much affection as disparagement. It had been an amusing tale, although Tomoyo couldn't picture the imposing guardian in any way less than dignified, or immaculate. She wandered down the road, remembering how Sakura had been in love with his false form for so long. In a way she still was, but that transient love had transmuted into a deeper bond - less passionate, maybe, but ever-present. And she had moved on to love someone else, as Yukito had done long ago on Yue's behalf. The fact that it was Sakura's onnichan had caused surprisingly little friction between him and Sakura; they were such a close family, Fuijtaka and his children, and she was glad of that.  
  
Tomoyo sometimes wondered who her next love would be, or if she had one. Her mother Sonomi had never remarried - at least not yet, though Tomoyo had a theory about a certain someone on the horizon - and she had lost none of her passion or her drive. Perhaps Tomoyo would be like her . . .  
  
Tomoyo turned up the path to Meilin's house.  
  
She rung the bell.  
  
After a second, Wei's footsteps answered. He was Meilin and Syaoran's butler. Sakura-chan was a little uncomfortable accepting service from him, but Tomoyo was used to servants, and smiled up at him. "Good evening, Wei. Is Meilin-chan in?"  
  
"Of course." He smiled back, "I will call her. . ."  
  
Footsteps receded, muffled sounds and what sounded like Meilin's raised voice penetrated the door, and Wei returned, looking a little concerned. "I'm afraid she's busy right now. . . perhaps if you'd come back tomorrow. . . ?"  
  
Tomoyo dropped her eyes politely, trying to hide her disappointment.  
  
"Arigato. . . demo. . . would you mind giving her these? Sakura and I made them for her, since she couldn't stay for tea. . . ?"  
  
Wei accepted the bundle and then hesitated. "Thank you for stopping by. . ." He seemed about to turn on his heel, but then stooped a little lower. Having a butler was a little different from having a servant, Tomoyo guessed, and Wei had probably known Meilin and Syaoran Li for many years, looking after them by himself. His relationship with them was closer to a father's than a servant's. And he was worried about Meilin.  
  
"I'll tell you what. . . why don't you come in so you can call your parents? They might be worried about you walking home so late at night. . ." His moustache twitched.  
  
Thus presenting her with the perfect opportunity to talk to Meilin. Tomoyo bowed politely, smiling back.  
  
"Arigato, Wei-sama," and Tomoyo stepped inside. . . 


End file.
